Do you own your Ambition?

Spring brings the promise for new beginnings and in that vain, I would like to introduce you to my new consultancy, Own It. I started this new consultancy with my associate, Jan Carrington who has 16 years experience as an Executive Presence and Branding Expert. We wanted to combine our expertise to deliver a more holistic approach to personal branding that focused on developing and communicating presence and gravitas but had a strong emphasis on image. We deliver sessions to help our corporate clients learn invaluable strategies on how to bring their image in line with their career aspirations and to present themselves in a way that communicates and maximises their potential. If you work for a forward thinking corporate companies in business and finance industries and think this is something that you or your team could benefit from then please get in contact. 

I wrote this blog below about what it means to be ambitious for the Own It website but felt it really resonated with my one-to-one personal styling clients who all have their own ambitions, but would define it in their own unique way. 

Do You Own Your Ambition? 

Growing up I had a very narrow view of what it was to be ambitious. Ambition belonged in the city skyscrapers reserved for men and women executives with high-powered corporate jobs.  I had a strong desire to run a successful business but as my pursuits were always creative, ‘ambitious’ had never been a word that resonated with me - it seemed too aggressive. But what my career journey has taught me is that ambition is not two dimensional - it is aspirational, purposeful, enthusiastic, committed and motivated. Do I own my ambition now? Yes! 

I am not the only one who has a complicated relationship with the word. Tory Burch is a very successful businesswoman who has built a global fashion and lifestyle company but has not always owned her ambition. In fact she flat out denied her own ambition when confronted by a male journalist early on in her career. She let her socially influenced bias of what it meant to be a women and be ambitious influence her association with the word. And for women this stigma is still real. A Harvard University study found that female politicians seeking power came across as uncaring, but their male counterparts did not. This type of social stereotyping exists in all industries and is supported be many work cultures. 

To help realign what it means to be a women and be ambitious the Tory Burch foundation launched a global #EmbraceAmbition initiative to empower females to own their ambition and what it means to them.  This year the #EmbraceAmbition campaign focuses on both women and men celebrating the people who inspire them to embrace ambition. The initiative has reached millions of people and demonstrated the transformative power of questioning stereotypes.

At Own It, Jan and I work with ambitious women and men who might have a different end goal but who are equally motivated and committed. We provide the practical tools they need to effectively communicate their ambition in a way that feels both relevant and authentic.

For all one-to-one personal styling appointments, please continue to contact me through Penny Bennett Style Consultancy. For group session on developing Presence and Gravitas through image then please contact me via the Own It website.